Friday, January 9, 2015

Cut Me Free by J.R. Johansson ARC Review

Seventeen-year-old Charlotte barely escaped from her abusive parents. Her little brother, Sam, wasn't as lucky. Now she's trying to begin the new life she always dreamed of for them, but never thought she'd have to experience alone. She's hired a techie-genius with a knack for forgery to remove the last ties to her old life. But while she can erase her former identity, she can’t rid herself of the memories. And her troubled history won’t let her ignore the little girl she sees one day in the park. The girl with the bruises and burn marks.

That’s when Charlotte begins to receive the messages. Threatening notes left in her apartment--without a trace of entry. And they’re addressed to Piper, her old name. As the messages grow in frequency, she doesn’t just need to uncover who is leaving them; she needs to stop whoever it is before anyone else she loves ends up dead.

* A Special Thanks to the publisher for this review copy!*

Okay, so I really liked this book. I didn't think I could find such a dark novel so endearing. Here's why, Cam.

Although Cam is not the main character, he was everything for me. I loved everything about his character, he was strong where the others were weak, and he was determined when everyone else wanted to give up. He knew when to push and when to pull away. I fell for him from his first entrance into the story. He seemed out of place but he fit perfectly.

The MC, Charlotte, a sixteen year old who's lived way too much life to be so young, is dealing with a lot, abusive parents, a dead brother, and now messages and threatening notes. Someone's watching her and they know her by her old name. On top of dealing with all of that she's now responsible for a little girl she rescued from living a similar past life.

Charlotte, is hurt and troubled, but resilient and fierce and I liked it. She never seemed like she was trying too hard, and even though she was very untrusting of others, she didn't let her hinder her life, too much.

This story is dark, but it never felt hard to read. The author took care to not take away from the harshness of the story but to keep it light enough that you don't feel dragged down by it. I really appreciated that about the book.

This story is remarkable for all of it accomplishes with love, abuse and trafficking awareness, and it's all encompassing and heart fluttering romance, which despite the subject matter, it's heavy on.

It's a great book that is totally readable, and I can't wait to read more of Johansson's work!

5 comments:

I'm glad you liked this one. I'm starting it soon and I can't wait. I can handle difficult to read stuff as long as it's handled well and it sounds like it is here. Great review!Cassi @ My Thoughts Literally

Sounds like an excellent read! I love it when an author delivers a story that deals with tough subjects but somehow makes it all beautiful with the characters' strength and determination. I'll add this book to my tbr list, I must read it one day.